CHILD’S reading book, it seems to me, 
should secure for the child three things, 
— practice in the art of reading, amusement, 
and instruction. Whether my little book is 
fitted to attain this threefold object, others 
must decide; but in laying it before the public, 
let me urge careful attention to a few sugges- 
tions. 
1. As the book is arranged so as to begin 
with the opening of the school year and to follow it to its close, 
the interest of pupils will be increased by reading the different 
chapters during the seasons to which they refer. 
2. The teacher should exercise judgment as to the omission of 
any chapter or group of chapters which may seem beyond the 
comprehension of the class. With a little care, such an omission 
may nearly always be made without injury to the usefulness of the 
rest of the book. 
3. Specimens of the objects described, when these can be found 
in the locality, should always be on exhibition in the schoolroom. 
Whenever possible, the children themselves should collect and 
handle these specimens. If for any reason this collection by the 
children cannot be accomplished, the teacher should not fail to 
anticipate the readings, and to provide the objects mentioned. 
By the observance of these simple and practicable suggestions, it 
is believed that, while the children are being trained in the art of 
reading, their powers of observation and of reasoning will be devel- 
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